MERCHANT CITY
Bairdstravel spent a day wondering about Glasgow`s Merchant city .
The Merchant city starts around the museum of Modern Art and finishes
at the Trongate.This Area was built up to house the wealthy traders during the 18th cantury .They were know as the Tobacco Lords .
Looking for a tour of the Merchant city visit http://greetinglasgow.com/
These merchants traded in tobacco,sugar and tea from the Americas.
At this time many classical villas were built in the area. Lying to the west of the High Street that formed the historic backbone of the city, the development of what is now known as 'the Merchant city' with wide, straight streets, vistas, and squares, marked the beginning of a process of aspirational residential movement westwards that would continue throughout the 19th century and into the 20th with the development of Blythswood Hill, Hillhead and the West End of Glasgow.
As Glasgow expanded in the 19th century to become the second city of the United Kingdom and its British Empire, the area became a working district of warehouses and home to the city's central fruit, vegetable and cheese markets.
After plans to construct a ring road around the city centre were published in the 1960s the area fell into decline, with many of the buildings compulsorily purchased by the city council to allow for their demolition and the central markets moved to modern premises outside the city centre. However the road was never built and in the 1980s the decision was taken to revitalise the area and its historic buildings with the public ownership of properties allowing large scale redevelopment.
The name 'Merchant City' was coined during this regeneration and is of no historical use. Historically the area was called 'the tron' or 'cross' or simply by most Glaswegians 'the toun' or 'the town'.
The Rogano
11 Exchange Place, Glasgow 0141-248 4055, www.roganoglasgow.com
Rogano has been in Glasgow as a seafood restaurant for over 70 years. The main restaurant serves a wide variety of locally caught fish and shellfish, delicately prepared by our dedicated team of chefs. Lobster thermidor and oysters rockefeller are a speciality.
Italian Centre, home to, amongst others, Versace Collections (the UK's first Versace store) and Emporio Armani. The Italian Centre was designed by Page & Park Architects who are fond of including art in their architecture. Here the art is integral to the façades, but also features in the courtyard including a sculpture, 'Thinking of Bella' (1994) by Shona Kinloch. Recent shopping developments include Cruise, Bose, Escada, Ralph Lauren, Mulberry and underwear and lingerie Agent Provocateur stores. The annual Merchant City Festival takes place in September attracting tens of thousands to the area with its multi-arts programme.
Candleriggs market now call Merchant Square
Bar Square - Tel: 0141 552 3232
Web: www.barsquare.co.uk
Email: info@barsquare.co.uk
Beer Café - Tel: 0141 552 9815
Lombardi’s - Tel: 0141 552 0139
Sizzlers Steakhouse & Ocean Grill - Tel: 0141 552 4200
Web: www.sizzlersteakhouse.com
Email: enquiries@sizzlersteakhouse.com
El Sabor - Tel: 0141 552 3400
Web: www.elsabor.co.uk
Email: el_sabor@btconnect.com
Metropolitan - Tel: 0141 552 9402 or
Tel: 0141 553 1488
Web: www.metropolitan-bar.com
Email: info@metropolitan-bar.com
Byblos - Tel 0141 552 3895
Web: www.byblosglasgow.com
Email: info@byblosglasgow.com
Arisaig - Tel 0141 553 1010
Web: www.arisaigrestaurant.co.uk
Email: info@arisaigrestaurant.co.uk
Located in the area of the Merchant City commonly known as "Old Glasgow", it is the main route into the central area from the East End. Trongate begins at Glasgow Cross, the original centre of medieval Glasgow, marked by the Tolbooth clock tower - the remains of the city's original City Chambers which was destroyed in 1926 by fire. Heading westward, it becomes Argyle Street, the most southerly stetch of Glasgow's "Golden Z" shopping thoroughfare.
It was around the 1560s that the name Trongate first began to be used. The name comes by virtue of a weighbeam erected in the mid 1500s. The weigh beam was where all goods that were brought in from the Clyde were weighed and taxed. A 'tron' was a unit of measure the region became known as Trongate.
The Tron church (built in the 17th century) with its distinctive steeple and clock is the street's best known landmark, and was substantially redeveloped in the 1980s as a theatre. Historically, in line with the rest of Glasgow's medieval area, Trongate fell into decline following the Industrial Revolution as the city expanded westwards, and even today there are still many derelict buildings and half-closed shops.
Tolbooth Steeple, a landmark in the Merchant City area .
